


RWBY One-shots/Drabbles

by umbriferous



Category: RWBY
Genre: AU - Oscar went to Signal and Ozpin didn't die, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Canon Compliant, Canon Rewrite, Canonical Character Death, Character Death, F/F, F/M, Mainly angst, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Canon, i'm sorry lol
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-07
Updated: 2018-03-07
Packaged: 2019-03-28 03:23:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,498
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13895205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/umbriferous/pseuds/umbriferous
Summary: Some random RWBY drabbles.





	1. Concrete Angel (WhiteRose & Rose Garden)

**Author's Note:**

> If she learned anything from her father’s abuse, it was that if you put up walls, you won’t get hurt.

This is the reason she put up her walls.

Weiss and Ruby were screaming back and forth, tears running down their faces. You don’t trust me. Take down your walls. I can’t do anything to help if you don’t let me. Weiss built those barriers, brick by brick, so she wouldn’t get hurt. If she learned anything from her father’s abuse, it was that if you put up walls, you won’t get hurt.

She let herself become friends with her team. However, their leader started to chip at her barricades, and before she knew it, they were a thing. Together. Girlfriends. Weiss loved Ruby — she really did — but kept those walls up. If you put up walls, you won’t get hurt.  
Ruby wasn’t stupid. She wasn’t oblivious to Weiss pushing her away after a while. Weiss realized that her partner broke a hole in her barriers, and she needed to patch it up before Ruby got too close. If she wandered too near, Weiss will get hurt. She mended her walls.

“You need help. Let me help you!” Ruby cried, voice cracking. Her tears were almost same color as her eyes. “Stop pushing everyone away!”

“There’s nothing you can do, Ruby,” Weiss sniffed, her demeanor opposite to her partner’s. She sat there, staring at her knees. 

“Don’t do this to yourself,” Ruby coughed. She paced around the room, arms helping her exaggerate. “Just talk to me. Please.”

“No!” Weiss snapped, halting her partner in her tracks. “I… I don’t know.”

Ruby sighed, bringing her hands to her face. “Don’t make this harder than it already is. You’re hurting me, Weiss. I don’t know how long I can keep this up.”

“I’m sorry, okay?” The heiress stood, bunching the fabric of her skirt. “It’s not your fault. It’s mine. I’m sorry.”

“If you’re sorry, then act like it! I can’t just stand around, trying to get you to open up to me when you refuse to! I don’t know why you keep pushing me away, why you don’t want me to get close to you. It hurts. It really hurts, Weiss. I just… I can’t do this anymore!” Ruby’s eyes clamped shut in frustration. Her faltering voice echoed through the room.

Weiss stopped, unable to process what her partner had said. “What… what did you say?”

“I said, I can’t do this anymore! I’m so sick and tired of wasting my emotions on someone who doesn’t even want to trust me.” Tears fell from Ruby’s eyes. “I don’t want to do this anymore. I can’t do this anymore.”

“Ruby…” 

“We’re done, Weiss.”

“Wait, Ruby! Don’t leave!”

Ruby responded with a sob and a slam of the door as she exited. Weiss stood there, taking everything in. She could hear her partner’s — are they still partners? — muffled cries from outside the room, followed by the warm tone of Yang’s voice. 

Weiss repeated her anthem in her head as she fell back onto her bed. Build walls, and you won’t get hurt. 

₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪

It seemed like an eternity for Ruby to move on. She met Oscar Pine, a small farm boy who attended Signal in silence. After finding the crew in Mistral, he asked to join their cause. They needed anyone they could get to defeat Salem.

Weiss watched as Ruby and Oscar became close friends. She treated him like she treated the heiress; never leaving his side and always being there for him. Before she knew it, romance sparked, and they were soon a two-time deal. They never left each other’s side. 

She had to admit, they were kind of cute. Two awkward, clumsy teenagers in love guaranteed warm, fuzzy insides and heart melting. However, that didn’t lessen how much it hurt to see Ruby Rose, the once love of her life, be happy with someone else. 

Again, Ruby wasn’t stupid. She wasn’t oblivious, feeling Weiss’s stares and noticing the light reflecting off of the tears in her eyes. Oscar wasn’t perfect, of course, but he made her happy. He didn’t put up boundaries, he opened up to her, and he trusted her. Something Weiss never did.

The tension between the two made combat awkward. Of course, they were still Team RWBY; what was RWBY without the ‘W?’ But of course, Ruby never said the words “White Rose” in battle since their falling. There was plenty of “Bumblebee,” “Checkmate,” “Freezerburn,” and so on, but “Ice Flower” ever escaped her lips. 

Ruby had enough. The pressure between the two grew too much, and if she let it blossom, then her team would fall apart. She was not about to let her favorite people split again, and over a quarrel between two people. 

“Weiss,” Ruby walked up to her combat partner. 

“Y-Yes?” Weiss stuttered, holding her trembling hands behind her back. 

“I’m not dumb. I know you’re jealous. I know you miss me, but it’s better this way. Please, just let me go.”

Instead of a proper response, Weiss burst into sobs. Ruby hugged the heiress; something she hadn’t done since their demise. Prompting Weiss to cry harder, she returned the embrace. A hand ran up and down her prominent spine. Before she knew it, the warmth ended, and Ruby placed her palm on Weiss’s cheek. She let a small smile cover her face, wiping away Weiss’s tears with her thumb.

And with that, Ruby walked back to her boyfriend. He greeted her with a laugh, grin, and an arm around her waist. Weiss imagined herself as Oscar as the pair walked away.


	2. It's Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At last, there was another door. It had the words “STAGE” written on it. The words taunted Ruby, telling her to give up. Don’t go. She’s already dead. You can’t save her now. 
> 
> She opened the door anyway.

The daggers appeared infinite; multiplying with every beat of Pyrrha’s heart. She knew that Penny only had a limited amount, but yet, thousands of them filled the open air. They were all pointed at her. Was this an intimidation tactic? Was this Penny’s semblance at work? Why do they keep on appearing?

A menacing grin spread across Penny’s face. She fired the swords. Before they could reach her, Pyrrha activated her own semblance and threw the daggers back at Penny. The metal cords that attached them to her body betrayed her. They wrapped around her limbs, pulling her back. The snake-like constriction tightened, bending her frame in places they shouldn’t. The cords cut through her body. 

There was no blood, no insides spilling everywhere. Just sparks and the occasional electric twitch from Penny’s detached torso. Alarmed gasps and screams filled the stadium. Concerned parents scrambled to cover their oblivious children’s eyes. A frightened few crammed their eyes shut and enclosed their ears. Penny’s daggers bounced on the ground, and a stray cloth from her clothing wafted down. It was soon stabbed by yet another sword. 

Pyrrha couldn’t move. She couldn’t cry, scream, or even breathe. The heavy taste of dread mixed with guilt and shock sat in her stomach. It crept up her throat, threatening to spill out of her mouth. It didn’t. It just left her feeling sick. 

Ruby could almost feel the Grimm racing towards the city. Their first target was the stadium and all the people in it. She acted on her senses, running from Mercury and back to the seats. Her eyes fell on the scattered pieces that were once a cheerful and overly-trusting girl. She had known that Penny was a robot, but it didn’t look right to see her in pieces with no blood. 

Falling to her knees, tears escaped Ruby’s eyes as she wept. “Penny,” she sobbed, wet coughs interrupting her. “Please, no.” She heard, but couldn’t register the lowering arena and Mercury appearing behind her. He had succeeded in delaying her. 

_ I could have saved her.  _ The message replayed in her mind. Her body jerked with each sob.  _ She’s gone and I could have saved her.  _ Before she was able to control her body again, Ruby stood and ran back down the service hall. 

“This was not a tragedy. This was not an accident.” A familiar voice echoed through the concrete hall, overpowering Ruby’s thundering footsteps. “This is what happens when you hand over your trust, your safety, your children, to men who claim to be our guardians but are, in reality, nothing more than men. Our academies' headmasters wield more power than most armies, and one was audacious enough to control both.” 

She tried to open a door labeled “STAGE ENTRANCE.” Locked. Instead, she grabbed Crescent Rose and destroyed the entrance. “They cling to this power in the name of peace, and yet, what do we have here? One nation's attempt at a synthetic army, mercilessly torn apart by another's star pupil. What need would Atlas have for a soldier disguised as an innocent little girl? I don't think the Grimm can tell the difference.” 

Ruby cringed.  _ A soldier disguised as an innocent little girl. Torn apart by another’s star pupil.  _ The tears began to spill again. “And what, I ask you, is Ozpin teaching his students? First a dismemberment, now this? Huntsmen and Huntresses should carry themselves with honor and mercy, yet I have witnessed neither.” 

The hall seemed to continue forever. Winding, twisting and turning.  _ Did I make a wrong turn? Am I going in circles?  _ “Perhaps Ozpin felt as though defeating Atlas in the tournament would help people forget his colossal failure to protect Vale when the Grimm invaded its streets. Or perhaps this was his message to the tyrannical dictator that has occupied an unsuspecting kingdom with armed forces. Honestly, I haven't the slightest clue as to who is right and who is wrong. But I know the existence of peace is fragile, and the leaders of our kingdoms conduct their business with iron gloves.” 

At last, there was another door. It had the words “STAGE” written on it. The words taunted Ruby, telling her to give up.  _ Don’t go. She’s already dead. You can’t save her now.  _ She opened the door anyway. “As someone who hails from Mistral, I can assure you the situation there is... equally undesirable. Our kingdoms are on the brink of war, yet we, the citizens, are left in the dark.” 

Pyrrha turned her head to the sound of Ruby slamming the door open. Her face was red, her eyes puffy with tears. She watched as the younger girl ran towards the dismembered body. Violent sobs wracked her entire being. Ruby picked up Penny’s torso. “Penny?” she cried, shaking the upper half in a feeble attempt to bring her back. “Penny! Penny, please, come back!” 

Taking responsibility, Pyrrha wanted to kneel beside her friend and comfort her. However, she still couldn’t move. “So I ask you: When the first shots are fired... who do you think you can trust?” The message cut out, leaving nothing but the heartbreaking noise of Ruby’s sobs to fill the stadium.

The rest of Team RWBY watched as their leader wasn’t able to do anything but cry over her friend’s dead body. Weiss and Blake’s eyes never left the screen. The two had never seen Ruby this upset. On the other hand, her sister’s innocent weeping was all too familiar to Yang. For the first time in her life, she felt powerless, unable to do anything to help her family. 

Bystanders watched. They watched until sirens blared,  warning people about incoming Grimm. The situation finally registering, Ruby grabbed Pyrrha’s arm and ran off the stage. She left the pieces of Penny behind her.

₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪

Several years had passed since Penny’s death. The Fall of Beacon had turned into something much greater and dangerous than an ominous voice over a loudspeaker and giant Grimm attacking the stadium. It resulted in thousands of deaths, both evil and innocent. Enemies had fallen, citizens were buried, and Team JNPR lost a member of their team. Pyrrha. 

Team RWBY had split. Weiss’s father, afraid for her safety, took her back home. Ruby and Yang were sent back to their childhood roots. Blake ran back to Menagerie, where she wouldn’t be discriminated against for being a faunus. All four of them had suffered through their own troubles, picked themselves up, and found each other. 

Together and with the help of many other friends, they defeated their main enemy: Salem. Master of Grimm and suffering. Though it cost some lives and hundreds of tears, she was eventually taken down along with the rest of her faction. The journey was taxing on all of them, but it was worth it in every aspect. 

One thing still bothered Ruby, however. Penny. She had seen and even held the broken pieces of metal -  _ metal, not flesh -  _ in her arms. It still troubled her that she was gone. Ruby had known that Penny was a robot, though she seemed human. She had the emotions, feelings, appearance, and reactions, although sometimes odd, of a real girl. 

Ruby was troubled until the day she decided to walk to the gas station herself. She wanted something sweet, and their kitchen pantry was empty of anything to her liking. The nearest convenience store was just under a mile away. A piece of cake. 

She strolled through the busy streets, still being repaired and rebuilt from the Fall of Beacon. However, Vale was peaceful. People were laughing with their friends, walking along the sidewalk on the phone, and window shopping. Out of the corner of her eye, Ruby saw white reflecting the sunlight. She turned her head to see a soldier in their metal uniform walking alongside Penny. 

_ Penny! _

Overcome with joy, she raced across the filled street, ignoring the honks and complaints of the drivers. She tackled Penny in an enormous hug. It took a moment for Penny to respond, but her arms returned the embrace, although very small. Pulling away from the hug, happy tears fell down Ruby’s face. The bodyguard had pointed their gun at her, ready to strike.

“Ruby Rose, what is this? What are you doing?” The soldier demanded, cocking his gun.

“It’s okay, no need to shoot,” answered Penny, putting her hand on the gun. They lowered the weapon, but still stood guard.

“Why did you hug me?” Penny tilted her head like a confused puppy. “And why are you crying? Are you okay?”

“Penny, it’s me!” Ruby pleaded, wiping away a few tears. “It’s me, Ruby, your friend! Don’t you remember me?”

“I don’t know a Ruby.” Penny furrowed her eyebrows, but then her eyes lit up and she smiled. “Oh! You must be confused with the old me. The old me was destroyed by a Huntress, so I was rebuilt! Sadly, I don’t have the memories of the old me, but you said you’re my friend?”

Ruby gasped, but then choked on the air as those happy tears turned to sorrow. Her face fell into her hands as she wept. Nodding, she replied, “You were my friend.”

“I’m sorry - Ruby, was it?”

She nodded, bringing her head back up from her palms. “Thanks anyway, Penny.” Before Penny had a chance to respond, Ruby disappeared into a winding tornado of red, leaving several rose petals in her path. She didn’t feel the need for something sweet anymore.    
  


  
  


 


End file.
